Highlights from Art Cologne 2018

by Paul Laster

Japanese artist HAROSHI’s carved wood sculptures Spiral Apple, Guzo (1810) and Guzo (1811) (both 2018), are made from polychromedskateboard decks, and were on view at the booth of Nanzuka (Tokyo). All photos by Paul Laster for ArtAsiaPacific.

Celebrating an incredible 52nd edition, Art Cologne returned to the Koelnmesse with more than 200 galleries from 33 countries, offering a wide array of modern and contemporary art over four different sectors.

For the first time, the fair opened concurrently with Art Brussels, which is in its 50th edition this year. Drawing visitors to the Ruhr region, Art Cologne was accompanied by major museum exhibitions, including retrospectives by Korean artist Haegue Yang at Cologne’s Museum Ludwig and Marina Abramovic at the Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn, as well as openings at galleries throughout Cologne.

Asian galleries were adequately represented at the fair with Gallery Kiche (Seoul), Pearl Lam Galleries (Hong Kong, Shanghai and Singapore) and Nanzuka (Tokyo), who offered works by artists from their stables, while Whitestone Gallery (Tokyo, Karuizawa, Hong Kong and Taipei) displayed Gutai masterpieces mixed with contemporary works. From Australia, Neon Parc (Melbourne) presented a solo show of work by artist Dale Frank. “We’ve done the fair five times over the past decade,” Neon Parc director Geoff Newton explained to ArtAsiaPacific on opening day. “Traditionally, the gallery likes to present solo booths, as it’s easier than trying to explain work by four different artists that you may not know, plus we consider it a pop-up show rather than just showing works from the inventory. This is our second solo show of new works by Dale Frank and we hope that it will be as well received as the earlier one.”

Further spotlighting artists from the Asia-Pacific region was a special exhibition presented by Galerie Michael Janssen (Berlin), entitled “Tangled Unity: New Histories in Film and Video from Southeast Asia,” which provided visitors with a sampling of new media works by six artists and a collective including Kiri Dalena from the Philippines; Charles Lim, Ho Tzu Nyen and Ming Wong from Singapore; Nguyễn Trinh Thi from Vietnam; Tromorama from Indonesia; and Hsu Chia-Wei from Taiwan.

Here are some of highlights from Art Cologne 2018, which runs from April 19 to 22.

Clearing (Brussels and New York) brought Belgian painter HAROLDANCART’s abstract landscape painting, as well as Thai artist KORAKRITARUNANONDCHAI’s Workshop for Peace/Pan’s Song (2018). The sculptural assemblage comprises a handmade, ceramic model of the United Nations Headquarters in New York; deceased trees roots; hand-blown glass orbs and neon and fiber-optic lighting; all housed in a plexiglass case. The glass flies on the wall are by French sculptor JEAN-MARIEAPPRIOU.

Indian artist ADITISINGH’s layered ink on paper pieces from 2018 and German artist OLAFHOLZAPFEL’s acrylic, glass and fiberglass sculpture were at the collaborative booth of Thomas Erben Gallery (New York) and Daniel Marzona (Berlin).

Galerie Johannes Faber (Vienna) highlighted Japanese photographer NOBUYOSHIARAKI’s group of 15 prints from his 2000 portfolio Untitled, Tokyo. Flanking the images were black-and-white pictures by Armenian-Canadian photographer YOUSUFKARSH and French lensman LUCIENCLERGUE.

Filipino artist and filmmaker KIRIDALENA’s objects and images, presented by 1335Mabini (Makati), speak to the fight for human rights and the crackdown of authoritarian governments. Her “Erased Slogans” series (2008– ), seen on the right, in particular, references demonstrations during the Philippines’ era of martial law under president Ferdinand Marcos in the 1970s.

KEIICHITANAAMI’s colorful, patterned canvases Metamorphose (2015), and Resonance of the Dream (2016), were on view at Galerie Gebr. Lehmann (Dresden).

Neon Parc (Melbourne) brought a solo presentation by Australian artist DALEFRANK. On view were a wall-based assemblage He thought no one noticed but he always looked at any bulge in another mans pants rather than their shoes as he had been taught; and mixed media painting Even though he was English he always spoke French with a peasant working class Spanish accent (both 2018).

Australian photographer ROSEMARYLAING’s theatrical pictures from her series “A Dozen Useless Actions for Grieving Blondes” (2009) lined the wall at the booth of Galerie Conrads (Dusseldorf).